 By Staff
July 6th, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
Here is a candidate announcement that surprised many – Andrea Grebenc, business owner for over 20 years, elected Trustee in 2014 and 2018 in municipal elections and elected Board Chair for four annual terms (2018-2021), is seeking the office of Halton Regional Chair in the October 24, 2022 municipal election.
 Andrea Grebenc Grebenc appears to be taking the position that younger more energetic leadership is needed at the Regional level. She wants to bring new ideas that meet the needs of those who are raising families and appreciate just how safe life is in the Region – she wants to build on that
Andrea is currently in her final year of her second four-year Trustee term with the Halton District School Board (HDSB). The organization is one of the largest organizations within Halton and one of the largest school boards in the province with an annual operating budget of $850 million dollars, over 100 facilities and 10,000 staff that serves the entire region.
The HDSB has been one of the top performing boards in Ontario during her tenure and while sitting as Chair she was often sought out by other Ontario School Board Chairs for advice. Halton Region functions under similar laws and governance rules and processes as the HDSB.
Andrea is known by many media outlets for providing frank and factual insight on education issues. A listing of interviews and articles is available on the Andrea4Halton.ca website. She looks to continue to serve the people of Halton in an alternate leadership position at the Regional level.
“The role of Regional Chair requires passion, energy and accessibility to fight for the well-being and interests of Halton Region. I have demonstrated these assets as a Trustee, Board Chair and entrepreneur.” – Andrea Grebenc
 Grebenc:: core values include transparency, accountability, and continuous improvement. Andrea has developed relationships with local, provincial and federal elected officials and is always ready to listen and serve her constituents. She has an excellent record as Trustee and Board Chair, with stellar attendance and trying to improve the system by sitting on and often chairing standing and ad hoc committees. Andrea’s core values include transparency, accountability, and continuous improvement.
As a business owner/consultant in the Information Technology (IT) field, Andrea has worked with organizations large and small to provide services and solutions. Her largest clients have included Toyota Canada Inc. and McMaster University where she has taught for over 20 years. She is a problem solver and collaborator.
Andrea has lived most of her life in Burlington. She loves Halton and has chosen to raise her three children here with her husband who also works in the IT field.
To be a part of this bid for fresh, strong leadership in Halton, join the campaign by volunteering, donating, and ordering a sign. Invite Andrea to events, large or small. Information is available at Andrea4Halton.ca. Reach out to Andrea at contact@Andrea4Halton.ca or call (905) 510-4847. Follow Andrea on Twitter at @AndreaGrebenc or on Facebook at @Andrea4Halton.
 By Connor Fraser,
July 6th, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
These last few weeks I have been unusually tired. Initially, I suspected that a combination of tough assignments at work and the warm weather were doing me in. However, a string of recent crimes and developments in high-profile cases have truly taken my breath away, to the point where I am ashamed to call myself Canadian. Happy belated Canada Day, I guess.
 Accident scene in Vaughan where three children and a grandfather lost their lives A few weeks ago, Edward Neville-Lake took his own life, 7 years after his 3 children and father-in-law were killed by Marco Muzzo at a Vaughan intersection. Muzzo – who was initially sentenced to 10 years in prison (despite having admitted to driving drunk in the past a handful of times) is now a full parolee, with no driving restrictions.
Back in May, Brady Robertson, 21, who killed a woman and her three daughters in a horrific crash in Brampton in 2020, was sentenced to 17 years in prison. Considering time served, Robertson will be released in just over 14 years. With our country’s disturbing affinity for early parolees, my money says he’ll be out in less than 7.
And this notwithstanding the fact that Robertson had the gall to appeal the government’s limit of THC concentration as “arbitrary” – despite himself having a THC concentration of 8 times the legal limit during the crash.
More recently, in its decision R v. Bissonnette, the Supreme Court of Canada struck down a Harper-era law allowing judges to stack parole ineligibility periods for multiple murders, alleging that such a punishment violates Section 12 of the Canadian Charter of Rights & Freedoms, which protects against “cruel & unusual punishment.”
In a country which prides itself for having a justice system designed to protect minority rights, these cases stand out for their egregious disregard for the rights of an oft-forgotten minority – victims. I cannot imagine the pain of the Neville-Lake family, who now live with the possibility of publicly encountering Mr. Muzzo. Were the roughly 4.5 years Muzzo (of his 10 year sentence) spent behind bars proportional to the damage he caused? Was the 10 year sentence?
 Marco Muzzo Perhaps more distasteful is knowing that Mr. Muzzo has also regained the privilege to legally drive a car. Sentences for drunk driving are no longer a deterrent and should be stepped up dramatically. For starters, I would advocate for a lifetime ban on driving for anyone caught behind the wheel with alcohol or THC concentrations above the legal limit.
The Supreme Court’s R. v. Bissonnette decision is a poster-child for how our justice system has been hijacked by an out of touch minority of jurists and academics. The decision is riddled with self-serving language that renders it nothing more than a pathetic monograph in defence of the most hardened criminals.
The justices write “For offenders who are sentenced to imprisonment for life without a realistic possibility of parole, the feeling of leading a monotonous, futile existence in isolation from their loved ones and from the outside world is very hard to tolerate. Some of them prefer to put an end to their lives rather than die slowly and endure suffering that seems endless to them (paragraph 97).”
Oh, I’m desperately sorry if some prisoners feel their predicament is “hard to tolerate.” Shouldn’t that be an intended result, to enforce upon prisoners a “monotonous, futile existence” that is “hard to tolerate”?
At its core, the court argued that because stacking parole ineligibility can completely eradicate a prisoner’s chance for re-integration, it violates human dignity and is incompatible with the principles of fundamental justice. Even if barely, the door to redemption should always remain open. Moreover, the court positioned its ruling as one “not about the value of each human life, but rather about the limits on the state’s power to punish offenders, which, in a society founded on the rule of law, must be exercised in a manner consistent with the Constitution (paragraph 142).”
Philosophically, I cannot agree with the court’s judgement. The concept of justice is fluid, subjective, and open to widely varying interpretations, none of which are inherently wrong. Despite what anyone might tell you, there is no such thing as “universal” or “fundamental” principles. In the United States, for example, many regions continue to apply the death penalty. Given that the United States is the among the world’s most enduring democratic societies, founded upon the rule of law, it would be hard to pinpoint what “fundamental justice” actually means when their methods of dealing with multiple murderers are so vastly different from our own.
So let us not blindly accept the narrative that there is some universal, invisible force preventing Canada from, under very specific and carefully considered circumstances, guaranteeing that a dangerous criminal will spend their entire life behind bars with no chance at redemption. To anchor the verdict, the court cited the maximum sentencing possible in a host of European “peer” countries, none of which exceeds 30 years. Regardless of what pathway others have chosen, Canada is not obligated to follow. Perhaps the prevailing narrative should be that these European countries have erred, and the law existing in Canada before May 27, 2022 was in fact more “just” according to the views of Canadians.
Which arrives at my second and final disagreement, specifically with the notion that there was ever a need, through this case, to place “limits on the state’s power to punish offenders.” The original law enabling stacked parole ineligibility was advanced by a democratically elected, Conservative majority government. The government’s lawyers in R. v. Bissonnette advocated upholding that same law, and were acting on behalf of a democratically elected, Liberal minority government. With such clear and bipartisan support, I hardly concur that any government abuse of power was amok. This is the will of the people today, from which a uniquely Canadian notion of justice should flow.
The current mess we have gotten ourselves into will not be easy to rectify given the importance our legal system places upon precedence. The Charter of Rights & Freedoms is a vital document, but one which leaves the door too far open to an ultra-lenient interpretation of the rights that criminals ought to have. A mere “slap on the wrist” for killing four people while driving drunk, or even the chance at being released into society after shooting up a mosque, is inappropriate.
 Connor was born in Hamilton in 1997, is a long-time resident of Aldershot.
In 2020, Connor completed undergraduate studies at the University of Toronto, with a B.A.Sc. in Engineering Science and a major in Electrical and Computer Engineering.
Between 2018 and 2019, he worked as a member of the technology development team at Microchip Corporation (North San Jose, California) where he contributed to the design of computer memory for FPGA chips. During the summer of 2013, 2015 and 2017, Connor lived in Quebec thanks to support from the YMCA Student Work Summer Exchange, and the Explore Program and is decently proficient in spoken French.
Connor has returned to U of T to enrol in the dual Master of Global Affairs and Master of Business Administration program.
 By Staff
July 4th, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
Revised and updated
 Spencer Smith Park has a special meaning for the people of Burlington.
Trample on what it means to them and city hall tends to hear about it.
Marianne, a nurse, who lives in downtown Burlington wanted to share with you her environmental exposure.
During the late evening of July 2nd the downtown was exposed to a random guy playing acoustic guitar (not very well) with a speaker.
During the wee hours – aka 0330 hrs. – on July 3rd – the downtown was exposed to a random act of fireworks.
During the late evening (beyond 10 pm) on Sunday, July 3rd the downtown was exposed to a random gal singing (not very well) with the assistance of a speaker.
What is the City of Burlington and Spencer Smith Park becoming????; an uncontrolled panhandling mecca in our coveted park?
No police presence or control.
A little further east at the band shell in Central Park the mood and the music is what people preferred.
These concerts take place on Wednesdays and Saturday: 7:30 to 9:00 pm – bring a chair and a blanket.
The program is a joint venture with Rocca Sisters and the city.
 That skyline looks as if it was painted in place – it was real and there are more of them to come.
 By Staff
July 3rd, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
 Repair Café – that band of people who pop into a community offering to repair almost anything – they can’t repair computers or printers is back. They are inviting people to bring in their broken household appliances which the team does their best to fix free. All the person with that broken hair drier has to do is pay for any parts.
Next location is Tuesday, July 5th 3-7pm at the Aldershot Outdoor Market, 195 Plains Rd. East.
Burlington has hundreds, maybe even thousands of people who took early retirement or put in their 25 years and stopped punching a clock – and are looking for something to do that appeals to their better selves.
Some serve on committees, others join service clubs and others come up with an idea of their own and look for ways to make it happen. Hunter Lawson picked up the idea, tweaked it a bit, created a logo and some signs and called people he thought would be interested. They now meet in different parts of the city every month or so
Related news story
What they do at the repair cafe
 By Pepper Parr
July 3rd, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
City Council decided January 2021 that there had to be a housing strategy that would make it possible for people to be able to live in Burlington and at some time in their lives buy a hone.
The provincial requirement that the city grow meant intensification had to take place which amounted to growing up – translate that to mean high rise towers – rather than growing out because there was no more greenfield land left.
At the same time the value of single family dwellings sky rocketed – due in part to cheap money from the banks and the realization that if you didn’t get into the marker now you might never get in.
Traditionally municipalities do not involve themselves in the supply of housing – they determine what can be built where through the zoning bylaw.
In June City Council took the first step in recommending the creation of a Housing Strategy.
The lead up to getting to the point was an 18 month process that resulted in a report yesterday that set out
12 actions – six of which were priorities
5 themes
5 pathways
1 vision
Most of the city departments were involved in putting the report together but there were five women who were at it every day of those 18 months.
It was a very proud day for Alison Enns and her team: Laura Daly, Kate Hill-Montague and Alexandra Mathers.
Increasing options for housing across the city was identified as a top priority and goal in the From Vision to Focus Plan. A key action item associated with this priority was ‘to complete the City’s Housing Strategy and implement the plan to address the needs related to young families, senior’s housing, affordable housing, special needs housing and newcomers by Q2-2022’.
A key action associated with this priority is to employ a range of communication and engagement tactics to ensure citizen involvement.
The objective was to
“…develop an innovative Housing Strategy for the City of Burlington that sets out policies, tools and actions to address residents’ housing needs now and in the future and will build on and support the Region’s Housing Strategy through the development of local solutions to housing issues in the City of Burlington.”
The Housing Strategy provides a road map for addressing local housing needs and increasing housing options that meet the needs of current and future residents at all stages of life and at all income levels. It identifies the key players in housing and their respective roles, including the role of the City of Burlington (See Action 1 of the Housing Strategy).
Burlington, as a lower tier municipality, has two key opportunities to do its part to “make moves” in addressing the broader housing crisis:
- First, through partnership and advocacy to help deliver the deep affordability and housing options needed by residents of Burlington within the lower income deciles; and
- Second, through focusing on implementing the direct actions that the City can take to increase housing options and opportunities for residents of Burlington within the middle-income deciles.
The key findings of the Housing Needs and Opportunities Report are summarized below:
- Rental housing supply is not meeting the needs of existing and future
- Housing is not affordable for many Burlington In the City of Burlington, the supply of housing that is affordable for all incomes is diminishing. In particular, home ownership for middle-income earners has become a challenge;
- Burlington residents do not feel there is enough diversity or options for housing in the City to meet residents’ needs throughout their lifecycle;
- As Burlington continues to grow and evolve, housing options will need to reflect this growth and change;
- As a lower-tier municipality, one of the greatest actions and areas of focus will be to leverage relationships with upper levels of government and local community organizations to advocate for housing affordability and foster partnerships for the delivery of housing to address needs across the continuum; and
- A lack of understanding among the general public about the benefits of a range and mix of housing options in the City often results in opposition to development that would address housing gaps.
The need was clear, what wasn’t as clear was how to get this done.
The pathway that Enns and her team had to determine was cluttered with what the other jurisdictions were doing.
The federal government was going to provide funds.
The Central Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) would be heavily involved
Ontario produced a report saying the people would just have to get used o the idea that there were going to be four plxes on streets that were single family dwellings. Try that idea on a city councillor who has to deal with property owners who say – certainly, great idea – but not on my street if you want my vote.
The Regional government had the task of determining what the urban growth boundaries were going to be – and had to work aganst a lot of deeply rooted resistance from the farming community.
Locally the team had to work within a planning department environment that was struggling to cope with close to impossible work loads and significant changes at the leadership level.
This was an initiative put in place by a city council was about half way through its term of office and at a time when the leadership of the Planning department was experiencing some stability issues.
The Chief Planner found that her position no longer existed on the City Organization Chart so was given the opportunity to find employment elsewhere taking a significant financial settlement with her.
Mayor Meed Ward was never able to create the kind of relationship she wanted with Mary Lou Tanner who was the Director of Planning, which made her departure inevitable at some point.
Despite this Allison Enns and her team were able to work very effectively.
The presented their report and got the endorsement they needed quite quickly. The recommendation vote was unanimous and went to Council on June 21st.
Then what?
Getting to this point meant loads of virtual meetings, all kinds of survey work. Enns was particularly good at creating a pause during a virtual meeting and doing a quicky survey of those participating on line
The Housing Strategy is underpinned by extensive technical work by Dillon Consulting and SHS Consulting
And of course there was an engagement plan that drew more than 1,400 responses over the course of 4 online surveys and hosting 6 virtual Open Houses.
One key element of the engagement was the Housing Strategy Working Group who along with the Steering Committee guided the preparation of the Housing Strategy.
The Housing Strategy identifies 12 Actions to move toward the vision for housing in Burlington. It provides a set of action-oriented housing objectives (Themes) and an associated implementation plan that also identifies a list of Prioritized Actions and Quick Wins.
 By Staff
June 3rd, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
The week long schedule of Standing Committee meetings begins on Monday.
Don’t expect it to be as dramatic as the Council meeting last wee.
The part that is going to keep this Council behind closed doors for much of the time on Monday is the items on the Confidential Agenda.
Confidential reports may require a closed meeting in accordance with the Municipal Act, 2001. Meeting attendees may be required to leave during the discussion.
5.1
Confidential human resources report providing a bargaining update for Local 2723 (HR-07-22)
Pursuant to Section 239(2)(d) of the Municipal Act, labour relations or employee negotiations.
 Oh to be a fly on the wall when this gets discussed. The city’s legal department is usually loath to let any information get out to the public. City Solicitor Nancy Shea Nicol has not had yo release this information in the past. 5.2
Confidential legal report – waive privilege to release external legal costs for Planning Act appeals completed during current term of Council (L-25-22)
Pursuant to Section 239(2)(f) of the Municipal Act, advice that is subject to solicitor-client privilege, including communications necessary for that purpose.
5.3
Confidential legal report – update on a litigation matter at 3200 Dakota Common (L-27-22)
Pursuant to Section 239(2)(e) of the Municipal Act, litigation or potential litigation, including matters before administrative tribunals, affecting the municipality or local board.
 1025 Cooke Blvd: The proposal affects 1.08 hectares of land on the north side of Plains Road East, east of Waterdown Road. The redevelopment proposes two mixed-use, mid-rise buildings of 10 and 12 storeys with retail and service commercial uses at the street level and 450 residential units above. Official Plan and Zoning Bylaw amendment applications have been submitted. Access to the property is proposed off Cooke Boulevard and Clearview Avenue with parking located at the rear of the buildings and an underground parking garage. It is currently the site of Solid Gold – an adult entertainment operation. 5.4
Confidential legal report – update on Ontario Land Tribunal appeal for 53-71 Plains Road East and 1025 Cooke Blvd (L-29-22)
Pursuant to Section 239(2)(e) of the Municipal Act, litigation or potential litigation, including matters before administrative tribunals, affecting the municipality or local board.
5.5
Confidential legal report – update on a litigation matter regarding a class action (L-32-22)
Pursuant to the following sections of the Municipal Act: Section 239(2)(a) the security of the property of the municipality or local board; Section 239(2)(e), litigation or potential litigation, including matters before administrative tribunals, affecting the municipality or local board; and Section 239(2)(f), advice that is subject to solicitor-client privilege, including communications necessary for that purpose.
Class actions are tricky business – no word yet from those who pass along information.
The public is now getting much more information on what is involved and who is involved. At one point Councillor Lisa Kearns complained about the public not even knowing the address of a development that had become a confidential legal matter.
 By Pepper Parr
July 3rd, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
The street level reaction is beginning to come in now that people can see the 15 minutes of fame that Andy Warhol promised us. You get to watch a train wreck taking place live. Link to that stunning performance by the Mayor is set out below.
When the Mayor announced she was going to do some agenda management and moved directly to what she referred to as an Integrity Commissioner she was exercising a right that she had. The problem with the decision she made and the position she took is that there was nothing from the Integrity Commissioner. Click HERE and see for yourself. It wont take much more than a minute.
 Top row: Member of Council: Sharman, Galbraith and Nisan watching in stunned silence. Bottom row Councillor preparing to leave the meeting and Clerk Kevin Arjoon struggling to maintain some order. He never did find a way to bring the Mayor to order on the several occasions when he should have. FACT: Also the the Integrity Commissioner did not write a report to Council .
FACT: The Mayor had no right to bring something onto the agenda without a majority vote to waive the procedural by-law.
FACT: The apology was a private matter. Councillor Stolte had chosen to apologize during non-debatable statements by Councillors. That was entirely her right to choose how she wanted to proceed.
Most of the remarks set out below are from Gazette readers. We didn’t make this stuff up. All asked not to be identified.
One writer said it “was not not clear how the Mayor had any ability to make a private matter public”; that didn’t deter the Mayor.
Some readers wondered “just where City Clerk was in all this” – he never did have control of the meeting which is what he was hired to do.
“Ms. Gartside clearly knew the matter was both private and not on the agenda. It is hard to imagine that she was a willing participant in what occurred.
“In the world of politics and drama, some scenes are meant to be watched, especially when you have no lines.”
The Integrity Commissioner can expect to be quite busy for some time yet – assuming he doesn’t drag his heels and then decide that this cannot be investigated or reviewed before the election.
Someone somewhere is going to have to do something to get this Council to the point where they walk their talk about Good Governance.
They all expect to be re-elected.
Related news story:
The event: the Mayor and her train wreck
A small poll on what readers thought the Mayor should do
 By Staff
July 2, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
 Mayor Marianne Meed Ward taking part in a Council Standing Committee meeting.
The first of our polls has been completed.
We asked: Should Mayor Meed Ward be apologizing to the public?
The response for something that was new and different for our readers was more than satisfactory.
The response was slightly above 10% of the people that saw the poll.
Our plan at this point is to publish a poll on the Sunday of each week and report on the results on the Thursday – last thing in the day.
We will set up our polling service so that people can look at the results of previous polls once they are complete.
You won’t be able to see the results of a poll while it is running – unless and until you have voted. We didn’t want people to see the results and then go with the majority.
The poll is set up so that you cannot vote more than once on any one question.
We’d like to get that response rate up to a 25% level.
And, if you have a question that you think should be polled – pass it along.
The results from the first poll are set out below.
Please keep in mind that this poll was taken BEFORE the Gazette published a video of the council meeting that was so disruptive.
By Pepper Parr
July 2nd, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
Earlier in the month, June 21st, during a city council meeting, the Mayor and a member of Council went at it.
 Mayor Marianne Meed Ward taking part in a Council meeting on June 21st, virtually from London, Ontario where she was attending the university graduation of her daughter. The Mayor, who has the right to revise a Council meeting agenda, decided that she was going to put an Integrity Commissioner matter at the top of the Agenda during which she expected Councillor Shawna Stole to read out an apology to a city staff member.
Stolte had already advised the Mayor that she would be making her agreed upon apology to Georgie Gartside, staff member with two decades of service, during the Councillor Comments part of the council meeting.
An item on the formal agenda is debatable, which would have permitted Council members to add their views. Councillors Nisan and Galbraith were the pair that took a complaint against Stolte to the Integrity Commissioner earlier in the year and resulted in the Commissioner recommending that she be docked five days pay.
Pay attention to the facial expressions and body language of these two council members.
The facial expressions were revealing. Councillor Sharman didn’t say a word; Galbraith kept this expression on his face throughout most of the meeting, Nisan hid from the camera most of the time. Stolte is shown packing up her stuff and leaving her seat at the council table. Clerk Kevin Arjoon will tell his friends it was the most contentious meeting her was every involved in. Know that Mayor Meed Ward was not in the Council Chamber, she was in London, Ontario attending her daughter’s university graduation.
The irony of all this is that on the 21st of June Councillor Stolte was the Deputy Mayor and filled in for Meed Ward when she had to leave the meeting.
A Council members Comments at the end of the meeting are not debatable.
Mayor Meed Ward used the lame excuse that Gartside wanted the item at the top of the agenda and not at the end so she would not have to listen to the full meeting to hear the apology that she took part in crafting and had approved.
That kind of behaviour gives the phrase “your pound of flesh” a whole new Better.
During the meeting we heard “point of order” and “point of personal privilege” being tossed around like horse shoes at a fall fair.
The Gazette has reported on this in the paste. We decide to take the time to excerpt the full discussion (it’s just shy of 14 minutes long) and ends with Councillor Stolte leaving her seat at the council table.
We didn’t cut a word.
We do have some comments following the video.
The video CLICK here
By James Snow
June 30th, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
 Summer can mean travel to relaxing locations – take your hobbies with you Summer is finally here and that means time off to enjoy the sun with our friends and family. But while it’s great to be on holiday, most of us miss having a sense of routine while we are away. In this article we are going to go a little deeper on this, talking about some ways you can optimize your summer and make the most of your time off, so that you don’t need a vacation from your vacation when you get back.
1: Take your hobbies with you
When we are on vacation, we want to be present and engaged with whatever is going on where we are, but what we don’t really plan for is all the time between our activities. Waiting for people to get ready in the morning, the afternoon rest before going back out and enjoying yourself, all those little moments in between all the fun. And this is where your hobbies come in. If you love playing casino games, finding a new online casino to enjoy while you are away can be the perfect way to relax and unwind – and not get annoyed at waiting for other people. Pick some fun games ahead of time so that you know what you want to play and can enjoy it, effortlessly, while on vacation.
 2: Make sure you listen to your body
With a hot summer ahead of us and temperatures throughout Europe reaching record heights in the early summer, libraries will be open so that people can cool off. Getting a heat stroke is not exactly a fun part of vacation, so stay cool by finding air-conditioning, staying in the shade and drinking enough water and eating enough snacks between meals. Listening to your body is one of the best ways to ensure you’ll end up having a great time.
3: Plan ahead of time
While summer and fun should be spontaneous, lack of planning can lead to less optimal situations – like overbooked restaurants, long lines at attractions and not knowing what you want to spend your time on. Planning ahead of time is not the same as having an agenda, it’s just a really good way to make sure that you have great options to choose from, instead of having to think of things at the last minute. It increases the chance of having a really good time!
By Staff
June 29th, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
The inaugural Lynx Air flight into Hamilton airport from Halifax took place yesterday afternoon.
This adds to the commercial destinations that depart from Hamilton to include Halifax, Edmonton, and Calgary.
<
Smaller airlines are finding that Hamilton International is cheaper to work out of and quite easy to get to for many people.
 The inaugural Lynx Air flight from Halifax is greeted by an arch of water from welcoming fore trucks. Quite impressive Photo by Cayla Awalt As of July 30, 2022, Lynx will service Calgary to Halifax five times per week and increase flights from the Greater Toronto Area to seven times per week. Starting July 14, Lynx will service Edmonton to Halifax twice per week.
Vijay Bathija, Chief Commercial Officer for the company told the reception that: “We know there are a lot of personal connections between Atlantic Canada, Western Canada and the Greater Toronto region; they want to build on those connections
Lynx define themselves as a new ultra-affordable airline, on a mission to make air travel accessible to all Canadians, and in keeping with that mission, Lynx is offering fares to Halifax from as low as $59* one-way.
Lynx’s network spans 10 destinations across Canada, including Victoria, Vancouver, Kelowna, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Toronto Pearson, Hamilton, Halifax and St. John’s. The airline operates a fleet of brand-new, fuel-efficient Boeing 737 aircraft and plans to grow its fleet to more than 46 aircraft over the next five to seven years.
When they say “ultra affordable they weren’t kidding. For that $59 you get a one way ticket that includes a seat and one piece of luggage.
You pay for everything after that.
Bathija, speaking during the ceremonies said no one ever raved about the food on an airplane, suggesting that passengers might think about eating at an airport restaurant.
The better suggesting was to bring your food with you – instead of packing a lunch bucket to take to the construction site – pack a lunch to eat on the place.
When you book your ticket in Lynxair.com you get a list of the choices. They send you an email 72 hours before the flight reminding you what is offered and you just enter your choices and it will be there when you board.
This is an important event for the Hamilton airport and an improvement in the destinations available for people in the western GTA.
More later on the growth of the airport – it is no longer just a cargo operation.
The close to packed passenger lounges attested to that.
By Staff
June 29th, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
It was an event many were waiting for – especially those organizations that were nominated.
  And it was an event that Terry Caddo had been looking forward to – Terry wants to be with his membership and running events that were drawing small groups was not what he had in mind.
Last night the Burlington Chamber of Commerce hosted their 2022 Business Excellence Awards!
Two hundred and fifty people took part with mc Joseph Tassoni, the Burlington fashion designer and entrepreneur, to celebrate the finalists and winners.
This year, the Business Awards Task Force was tasked with the challenge of presenting eight Awards of Excellence. The Chamber named 21 local organizations as finalists of awards in a variety of categories. Award nominations were based on overall business excellence and the criteria include excellence in business leadership, community contributions, entrepreneurship, environment, employee welfare, innovation and market growth.
The Burlington Chamber of Commerce’s 2022 Business Excellence Awards Winners are:
• Hospitality & Tourism: QB Sports Bar Grill Games. Accepted by Stephanie Morden, Manager
• Manufacturing: B.S.B. Manufacturing Limited. Accepted by Narinder (Nindi) Bhogal, President
• Not-For-Profit: Food For Life. Accepted by Graham Hill, Executive Director
• Retail: Joelle’s and Jeff’s Guyshop. Accepted by Joelle Goddard-Cooling, Owner
• Service, Business-to-Business: Stratus Building Solutions. Accepted by Shafiq Mohamed,
President
• Service, Business -to-Consumer: Burlington Denture Clinic. Peter Iapichino, Owner/Denturist
• Service, Large: TipTapPay Micropayments Limited. Accepted by Chris Greenfield, CEO
• Young Entrepreneur: Joe Apps Technology Support. Accepted by Joseph Apps, Head Joe
The Gazette will follow up with a closer look at these organizations and the people that keep the doors open.
By Pepper Parr
June 27th, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
Just about everyone has some kind of a plan for Canada Day. And just about everyone will pause and reflect on how fortunate we are.
But not everyone sees the holiday quite the same way.
My friend Steve Paquette, an Indigenous elder who works for the Halton District School Board and was instrumental in getting Ryerson Public school renamed and for giving the park with the same name something more fitting.
 Steve Paquette would like to see sweet-grass grown and harvested in the park now known as Sweetgrass Park Paquette suggested the name Sweetgrass; it was accepted and the park was renamed. The next thing Paquette wants to see is some Sweetgrass growing on the property.
During our conversation Paquette asked me how I thought the Indigenous community was going to celebrate Canada Day.
I didn’t have an answer for him. Would they not celebrate it the way the rest of us do?
Apparently not. Their take on the day is that it celebrates the land being taken from the Indigenous community. The day celebrates a day when treaties were signed with the British who were concerned about the land as property which is not the way the Indigenous saw the treaties they signed.
 An Indigenous dancer performing at Spencer Smith Park. Photo by Harry Hersh The Indigenous people were thinking in terms of sharing the land. Property was not a concept they knew anything about or understood.
With that background – it is understandable when Paquette says “they are celebrating the day they took our land from us.”
“They committed cultural genocide and to this day we mourn the loss of that part of who we are as a people”, said Paquette.
So what do we, as the people who celebrate Canada Day, do to recognize the feelings of the Indigenous people?
We read land acknowledgements; we speak positively about the Truth and Reconciliation report but tend to put Reconciliation before Truth.
We readily accept the renaming of buildings and streets.
There is a change taking place; the Indigenous people now have the wind behind their sails.
The number of children who were buried while at residential schools is beginning to sink in – something more than 10,000 children is now more than an estimate.
Many do not realize that Burlington was not the result of a treaty being signed. The land that is Burlington today was purchased by the British from the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation. When the British had title to the land they gave it to Joseph Brant.
Oakville is made up of land that was named in different treaties.
Will the public hear anything more than a land acknowledgement on Canada Day when they Mayor speaks.
 Is there anything more than can be said?
Paquette would like to see a stronger acknowledgement and looks for more significant changes and for the Indigenous people being at the table making a difference.
I think he would like to see the end of unsafe water advisories.
How we as a people put up with having other people, who were here long before we were, having to boil the water before they use it is something I have never understood.
 By Maria Garcia
June 27th, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
Since April 4th, 2022, Ontario residents, including those in Burlington, gained legal access to online gambling sites. Now that the market is up and running, we thought we’d check in on what has changed.
Has the ability to place over under bets and wager on the outcome of the roulette wheel changed our attitude toward gambling? Are the legal safeguards in place working to improve the lives of people in Burlington and Ontario in general? These are the questions we aim to answer.
What’s Changed?
Plans to end the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation’s market monopoly were announced in April, 2019. The legislation was introduced and passed in 2021, and later that year, regulatory standards were drafted.
The main changes were new advertising standards and rules for casinos, as well as the introduction of a new licensing system. For sports betting, it brought forth more choices for sportsbooks and a wider choice of bet types.
 iGaming Ontario
iGaming Ontario (IGO) is a subsidiary of the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) and is in charge of regulations and licences. The government body has already granted licences to several operators, which have met the new regulations.
Online gambling isn’t new to Burlington. However, sites will now require a licence to operate. As they’ve become a part of the system, they’ll need to pay taxes that’ll benefit locals.
Sports Betting
Bettors aged 19 or over now have access to several online sportsbooks. Before the change, sports fans were able to make predictions via the only sportsbook available. Additionally, single-event betting is now possible, whereas before, the focus was on parlays.
Around 20 sportsbooks have been granted licences. It means bettors can choose where to spend their money based on various factors.
Casinos
 Offshore casino gambling was already pretty well established in the province. The change in licensing and regulations is giving home-grown establishments the opportunity to penetrate the local market.
The 20% tax rate is a bone of contention with the brick-and-mortar casinos, which are subject to a much higher percentage at 55%. Many argue that the changes will cause a loss of revenue for existing operators.
On the other hand, proponents of iGaming regulations suggest that offshore gaming was already competing with land-based casinos. They maintain that legal online casinos need a lower tax rate to compete with overseas sites.
 By Maria Garcia
June 27th, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
Just like the various sports that millions of fans follow, NASCAR races have a particular range of time in which they get completed. Some individuals have opined that the races in NASCAR are quite lengthy, and that the focus of the fans decreases over time. Typically, NASCAR has the longest motorsports race times in its class.
 A sport where winning is what it is all about. A normal NASCAR Race at Road America lasts for 180 minutes. However, it can last longer under certain conditions. Every NASCAR race goes through different stages, with every stage possessing a certain number of points. The length of a race relies on several factors, including the weather and red flags.
Factors that Determine the Length of a NASCAR Race
 For NASCAR race fans this is a truly magnificent view The Racetrack
To a newbie, NASCAR’s signature oval racetracks all look the same. However, each racetrack is unique and defined with specific features that influence the average velocity of the circuit. Steeper racetracks typically encourage higher speeds and quicker lap times.
Race Stages
NASCAR races have different stages, where drivers are rewarded with points after each stage. Every race is split into three stages. Each stage is different depending on the length of the racetrack.
For instance, the Daytona 500 race has a sum of 200 laps. After 60 laps, stage 2 begins and ends after another 60 laps. Stage 3 has a total of 80 laps.
Every racer to finish among the top 10 gets rewarded with points and bonus Playoff points. Essentially, it means that no one can win the Championship until the last race has been finished.
Secondary Factors that Can Affect NASCAR Race Length
One of the secondary factors that can impact the length of a NASCAR race is an accident. When an accident occurs, there’d be wreckage left on the track that can affect other drivers. Solving this issue can take quite a long time.
 Race course barriers are critical for public safety and drivers. Getting them in place and keeping them in good repair impacts on race time length. The barriers can sometimes break down after repeated collisions with the cars. Leaving these fences unattended could possibly endanger both the drivers and the fans.
During the race, the barriers have to be repaired and oftentimes replaced altogether, which could lengthen the time of the race.
Conclusion
Motorsports fans complain that NASCAR races are lengthy but they watch them regardless. Many factors, such as the weather, state of the fence, accidents, racetracks, stages and so on affect the time of NASCAR races.
By Staff
June 24th, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
Lunch At Allen’s is a musical powerhouse comprising four remarkable Canadian talents: Murray McLauchlan, Cindy Church, Marc Jordan and Ian Thomas.
As individuals, they have written for or sung on over 25,000,000 CDs, penning hits for Josh Groban, Chicago, Bonnie Raitt, America, Santana, Cher and Rod Stewart, as well as Murray’s Farmer’s Song, Marc’s Marina Del Rey and Ian’s Painted Ladies, just to name a few.
These three artists have come together adding the incredible voice of Cindy Church (Quartette, Great Western Orchestra) to form Lunch At Allen’s. Attending their stage show is to embark on an intimate musical journey replete with laughter and personal anecdotes, familiar favourites and new material, fashioning an unforgettable evening’s entertainment …from their hearts …to your soul.
On stage at the Performing arts Centre June 29th.
“You would be hard pressed to find another Canadian ensemble with more collective depth of influence over Canada’s musical landscape than Lunch At Allen’s.” – The Beat Magazine
Dates & Times
Wed Jun 29, 2022 at 7:30pm
Venue – Main Theatre
Ticket Prices
Regular: $67.50 (All-in)
 By Pepper Parr
June 23rd, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
Mayor Marianne Meed Ward has launched her campaign for Mayor.
 Vanessa Warren, who describes herself as a Business Owner, Rancher, Rider, Wrangler, Trainer Coach and sometime Activist, hosted a campaign kick off for Mayor Meed Ward It took place recently at Capstone Farm, located in the northern part of ward 6: a road and a half north and they would have held the event in the Town of Milton.
Our source tells us that two members of council took part: Ward 3 councillor Rory Nisan and Ward 1 councillor Kelvin Galbraith.
One would have thought ward 6 Councillor Angelo Bentivegna would be on hand. Wonder why he wasn’t?
Capstone Farm is home base for past ward 6 candidate Vanessa Warren.
Nick Leblovic was on hand to do a lot of the glad handing
 By Pepper Parr
June 21st, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
The Procedural Bylaw determines what you can say and how you must say it when you are delegating before city council.
They like it that way. I will come back to that Bylaw later.
It’s a little different when citizens can put what they are thinking and feeling about the plans to purchase Bateman emails/questions posed
The following are questions that were sent to the city by residents.
 Why is the business of purchasing this property proving to be so difficult – it is really about one pocket of public money being put into a different pocket of public money. 1. Hi there,
I would like to give feedback on the project. Hope this is the correct forum.
I have lived in Burlington my entire life, I have been a volunteer in various areas from
sports to mental health.
My family [Greg/Andrea] Howard has been recognized for work in the community.
Today I am 45 years old – the last two ice arenas that have opened were Mainway in
the 1980’s / then Appleby in the 2000’s.
Our population continues to grow, our recreational infrastructure for ice sports / indoor
events does not.
Youth hockey is growing, girls and women’s hockey continues to grow, adult programs
are growing.
Arena’s are destinations, and I would bet besides the sound of music festival and
soccer fields – more visitors come to these arena’s / rec. centers than other place in
Burlington.
The “Skyway” rec center project is now used to hold city arborists equipment. We have
now reduced arenas, not grown them
The city of Burlington needs to look at this project with the inclusion of an arena. The
youth deserve it.
Hope someone can acknowledge this.
I’m happy to discuss more.
Thanks, Justin Howard
2. Turn the available land into a much needed full ice and training facility for our
youth. Ice availability in our City is not sufficient for the demand. Our youth are
shortchanged when it comes to ice sports!
Do something to make our residents proud without turning it into another pier
disaster! Dave Guluche
3. Why did the city not have a public engagement plan in place from when it decided
to pursue the acquisition of the property? Jim Thompson
4. When will the traffic studies be complete?
5. What is the plan for removing the asbestos on the site?
6. What is the plan for removing the asbestos on the site? (see above, in the
FAQs)
7. When will the traffic studies be complete?
CM-17-22
8. “What regulation prevents the release of the cost information? The city offer was
accepted by the school board so why the need for secrecy?”
9. Good Morning, I’m glad to see and very much support the proposed adaptive
reuse of Robert Bateman High School by the City of Burlington for a combination
of community and educational uses. I am particularly happy to see the relocation
of the New Appleby public library branch to a more appropriate long term home.
Thank you to city staff and council for your leadership in making this happen.
10. Why is the city rushing engagement – how much is this going to cost the city
taxpayer?
11. Why is the city not answering any questions regarding this project – who wrote
the FAQ.
12. How can a survey that was only up for one day and an information that only
lasted 90 minutes be considered as adequate public engagement?
13. There are outstanding questions that needs to be answered.
• who provided the money to purchase the property in question?
• who provided the money to build the school sitting on the property?
• In both cases it was the TAXPAYER. Therefore the TAXPAYER should receive
the money back, NOT have to “PAY AGAIN” for the City to obtain the property &
building.
• We TAXPAYERS would like these questions answered!!!
Some additional questions from the Gazette.
Why is this engagement business being handled so badly?
Is anyone in the Communications department even listening?
And that Procedural Bylaw – it gets written for Council based on what they want the bylaw to be – why isn’t this an election issue?
Why isn’t there a group people (10 or so is all it would take) to go over the document, re-write and then lobby the members of Council and put together a petition and press council until they make changes to the document.
 By Alex Larsens
June 21, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
Factors Influencing The Prices of Cryptocurrencies
Over the last few years, cryptocurrencies have become popular among investors worldwide. These digital currencies are characterized by high volatility, which translates to high levels of risk. Simply put, crypto prices can experience a wide swing in both negative and positive directions.
If you are wondering about the causes of these price fluctuations, then it is a must to look into the various factors that can influence the prices of cryptocurrencies. As the use of cryptocurrencies gains more adoption, they have become intertwined with the global economy. For this reason, this guide will look into these price fluctuation drivers.
 What Drives Price Changes In Cryptocurrencies
Cryptocurrencies are not backed by the government or any central authority. This ensures that they are not affected by inflation rates, as well as other monetary policies, that can affect regular fiat currencies. However, other common factors can impact crypto prices. Some of these are introduced as follows:
Demand and Supply
Just like other traditional commodities, the concept of demand and supply can affect the prices of cryptocurrencies. Take, for instance, the supply of the largest cryptocurrency, Bitcoin is limited to 21 million coins. As the supply of this cryptocurrency nears its limits, demand increases since the supply drops. When demand rises, the price also rises.
The Impact of crypto exchanges
There is a dramatic rise in the rate at which cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and TeslaCoin, among others, are traded. This higher rate has been followed by the introduction of a plethora of crypto exchanges on the internet. For most major tokens, which are available on many crypto exchanges, there is a rise in the number of investors that are purchasing and selling the tokens.
 For investors that are interested in swapping a cryptocurrency token with another by making use of multiple exchanges, each swap comes with a fee, which eventually increases the cost of investment.
Production Cost
To verify the authenticity of a transaction on a cryptocurrency network, there is a need for a process called mining. To reward miners, the network offers them a new cryptocurrency. In Bitcoin, for example, this is how new coins are produced. Miners are often charged with the responsibility of solving complex mathematical algorithms for the right to add a block of transactions to the public ledger, called Blockchain.
 With this effort from miners, the decentralized nature of cryptocurrencies is not compromised. As the supply limit draws near – 21 million for Bitcoin – the level of mathematical algorithms that miners must solve to find and verify a block becomes much harder. The amount of energy and time that is needed to achieve this mining process might become very high.
To maintain their profit to make up for the high production costs, most miners often raise the value of cryptocurrencies. After all, it makes no sense for miners to invest more production costs into the mining process if the cryptocurrency they are rewarded is lower in value.
Government Regulation and Media Hype
The fact that cryptocurrencies cannot be controlled by a single entity scares the government. They feel that traditional FIAT currencies might be under serious threat since cryptos are more than capable to stand in as alternatives. For this reason, many governments restrict – or completely ban – the use of cryptocurrencies in their country.
For nations with a high number of crypto investors, any bad government regulation can negatively impact the value of the digital asset. Besides this, social media hype has also been known to affect cryptocurrencies by lowering and raising their values. The involvement of celebrities can also influence the adoption of cryptocurrencies, which raises demands for them and increases their values.
Conclusion
The crypto market is on the rise. However, its high volatility makes it a risky investment. For this reason, it is important to understand the various factors that can drive crypto prices while implementing the right strategy that can manage these factors.
 By Christopher Boyd
June 21st, 2022
BURLINGTON, ON
One of our security service providers published a scam that is targeting Facebook users – targeted in massive phishing campaign. We share it with you. First published June 9th, 2022
Facebook is once again the launchpad for a large-scale phishing campaign, according to researchers at PIXM. The campaign, which first shows signs of life back in September 2021, has generated millions of page views and ad referral revenue “estimated to be millions of USD at this scale of operation”.
Credential harvesting on a grand scale
Researchers claim the threat actors stole one million credentials in four months to help achieve the above potential level of revenue. Aspects of the phish campaign are fairly typical of what you can expect to see from a Facebook phish, and the tactics used to spread bogus links are not particularly original. What matters most of all is that it works. When basic phishing tactics pull in so many accounts and clicks, there’s no need to overcomplicate things.
 One of the scam pages from 2021 attracted no fewer than 2.7 million users, with the number rising to about 8.5 million in 2022. This is a huge ramp-up of already significant numbers, and also perhaps a little surprising that the site avoided being taken down for abuse.
This is one phishing campaign that isn’t messing around.
How the phish worked
Unfortunately specifics are absent in a few areas, but it works as follows.
A Facebook user receives a notification in Messenger. This is, at its most basic, a rogue link.
There’s no information around whether a message accompanies it, and if so, what it says. However, something as simple as the below messages are routinely used in Facebook scams:
Seen this?
Is this you in the photo?
Guess who died?
Check this out!
The link is shortened to help bypass any Facebook spam filters. The shortening services used are commonplace, popular and entirely legitimate. This makes it trickier for Facebook to figure out if the link is potentially good or bad.
The link takes potential victims to a variety of sites but a phishing page will be the primary destination. Once phished, the victim is sent elsewhere. It could be a promotion, a survey scam, or pretty much anything else that’s ad-centric. There’s also the mention of potential malvertising pages, on top of the threat of being phished. All these links have ad trackers and other ad-related forms of revenue generation buzzing away in the background.
Current state of play
According to PIXM, the campaign is still alive and kicking. Many of the sites involved have been taken down, and one website listed in the landing page code has been “seized” in relation to an investigation. What that investigation is, and who is doing it, isn’t clear.
What is clear, is that without dedicated resources and probable law enforcement involvement, something like this will never fully go away. It’s simply too easy to keep creating spam domains, signing up as an affiliate, and generating endless shortened URLs. The (potentially exaggerated) claims of $150 for every thousand visits from the US alone from the threat actor is all the incentive they need to keep doing it. As researchers note, this figure would result in a theoretical revenue of $59M from the end of 2021 to now.
Tips to avoid Facebook phishing
 Be wary of messages which don’t follow the natural flow of a conversation. Messages sent at unusual hours or out of the blue with a link should be treated with caution.
If you’re presented with a “Login to view content” box, take a deep breath before going any further. If you’re already logged in, there should be no reason why you’d be asked to login again. Check the URL. Are you on Facebook.com, or an unrelated website?
If you’re able to, ask the sender about their message away from Facebook. Their Facebook account may have be compromised, but you probably don’t have to worry about sending them a text.
Enable 2-factor authentication (2FA). If you hand over your password to a phishing page, the phisher can’t do much with it while you’re protected with 2FA. Keep in mind that some phishing sites will also try to steal your 2FA codes.
Add login alerts to your Facebook account. If someone does compromise your login credentials and access your account, you’ll be notified by Facebook as soon as this happens.
|
|
